Netanyahu is the one who 'doesn't want to end war in Gaza' - Hamas chief

Hamas Political Bureau Chief Ismail Haniyeh has warned against a possible military operation by the Israeli army in Rafah and said that it could lead to a massacre against the Palestinian people.

In an exclusive interview with Anadolu on Saturday, Haniyeh said, “I call on all brotherly countries, our brothers in Egypt, our brothers in Türkiye, our brothers in Qatar as mediators, and the European countries to take action to restrain (Israeli) aggression and prevent the operation in Rafah, as well as the complete withdrawal (of the Israeli army) from the Gaza Strip and the end of the attacks on Gaza".

Regarding the resistance of the Palestinian people, Haniyeh said, "If the Zionist enemy enters into Rafah, Palestinian people will not raise the white flag. The resistance fighters in Rafah are ready to defend themselves and resist attacks.”

What Israel wants is 'unacceptable'

Emphasizing that Israel has not accepted a ceasefire in Gaza despite all the negotiations, as dozens of proposals have been submitted through mediators, Haniyeh said: "All it wants is to take back the prisoners and then restart the war in Gaza, and this is not possible."

"The Israeli army must completely withdraw from Gaza. Israel also does not want the displaced people to return to northern Gaza. It accepts a limited and gradual return. It is unacceptable.”

He emphasized that Israel proposed a small number of people for a prisoner exchange despite having arrested nearly 14,000 Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza since October 7.

“It is Israel and the US, which does not exert any pressure (on Israel), and that is preventing an agreement from being reached. As soon as Israel accepts these demands, we will be ready to reach the agreement," he added.

Haniyeh noted that while Hamas showed flexibility in negotiations, Israel took an uncompromising stance, attributing the failure and interruption of talks to the attitude.

Gaza governance after war

Haniyeh stated that Gaza will be governed by Palestinians when the war ends.

“Hamas is not insisting on being the sole authority in the administration of Gaza, but we are part of the Palestinian people and can establish a national unity government on a partnership basis and agree on the administration of Gaza," he said.

"These are national issues. We will not allow the situation of Palestine in Gaza, the West Bank, or both to be regulated by occupiers or anyone else”.

Haniyeh said alternatives regarding the administration of Gaza have been proposed, but success for the alternatives is not possible.

"We made a two-stage call for the regulation of Palestinian domestic politics. The first stage consists of the reorganisation of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) to include all Palestinian groups. The second stage involves the establishment of a national government that will undertake the reconstruction of Gaza and unify the institutions in the West Bank and Gaza under one roof, and ensure the holding of presidential, legislative, and national council elections,” he said.

Haniyeh underlined that Gaza is a national part of Palestine, indicating that Hamas expects the national consensus government covering Gaza and the West Bank to govern after the war.

'Tens of thousands of martyrs under rubble'

Haniyeh said Israel, which heavily bombed Gaza from the air and before entering by land, adopted a strategy based on killing, as well as imposed military and humanitarian blockade - destroying hospitals, schools, infrastructure, bakeries, pharmacies and factories.

"For over five months, nothing entered Gaza. Hunger was used as a weapon to break the people's will and to pressure them to migrate from north to south. It is a very difficult situation in terms of both the number of martyrs and wounded, as well as those trapped under the rubble. There are thousands of martyrs buried under the rubble. Every day we discover new mass graves,” he said.

‘Netanyahu does not want to end the war in Gaza’

Regarding Iran-Israel tension, Haniyeh said: "All of this indicates two things. Netanyahu does not want to end the war in Gaza. On the contrary, he wants to expand its framework for a regional war. Similarly, they want the Americans to be part of the military front against Iran and a part of the military wing that serves Israel."

"The Zionist enemy is responsible for this tension and regional escalation, denying the rights of our people, continuing to attack our people, our sanctities, especially Jerusalem and al-Aqsa, and continuing the genocidal war in Gaza," he added.

‘Israel imposing media blackout’

Assessing the media's stance on Gaza, Haniyeh stated that there is good attention and support for what is happening in Gaza in the Turkish, Arab and global media.

He stressed that Israel is imposing a significant media blackout and preventing foreign media members from entering the region to prevent the exposure of its crimes and atrocities from being brought to the attention of the world's public opinion.

Haniyeh urged Turkish media and other outlets to continue exposing Israel's crimes, highlighting the dimensions of the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza, and breaking Israel's media blackout.

Following his meeting with Erdogan in Istanbul, he told Anadolu it was the first time he had spoken to an international media organisation since October 7.

'Blood of my sons no more valuable than children of Palestinian'

Haniyeh noted the attack in which his sons and grandchildren were killed and said it reflected three points: "Firstly, the enemy's failure to achieve military targets for seven months, except for killing civilians, thousands of children, women, and the elderly. Therefore, the massacre carried out during the holiday in which three of my sons and five of my grandchildren were killed is also included in this context and highlights the failure of the enemy.

“The second aspect is the misconception that such a massacre reaching my home, my children, and grandchildren will exert pressure on the leader and the leadership of the movement to make concessions in the ongoing negotiations, which is misleading".

He added, "Thirdly, my sons are part of the Palestinian people, and their situation is the same as that of the Palestinian people. From the very beginning, I said that the blood of my sons is no more valuable than the children of the Palestinian people in Gaza, the West Bank, or anywhere else”.

Haniyeh added that all martyrs in Gaza, the West Bank, or abroad, are his children.

"Therefore, we are equal in rights, duties, and sacrifices. We accept these with steadfastness, determination and unwavering will. Regardless of the cost and the sacrifices required, we will continue on this path,” he said.